1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a communication terminal.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Recently, a technology of a personal portable communication terminal has been rapidly advanced.
According thereto, various design communication terminals, e.g., a bar type terminal, a flip type terminal and a folder type terminal, are produced.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of a conventional folder type communication terminal.
Referring to FIG. 1, a folder type communication terminal comprises a main body 1 and a folder 2. The main body 1 and the folder 2 are hingedly coupled to each other.
Therefore, the folder 2 is hingedly rotated into an open position or a closed position with respect to the main body 1.
The main body 1 includes an upper cover 6 which is formed with a plurality of holes 7 for keys 4, a lower cover 8 which is disposed under the upper cover 6 and coupled thereto, a circuit board 9 on which various components are mounted and which is interposed between the upper cover 6 and the lower cover 8, and a key pad (not shown) which is interposed between the upper cover 6 and the circuit board 9 for data input. The keys 4 on the key pad are inserted into the holes 7 of the upper cover 6, respectively, and exposed outside.
The folder 2 includes a display device 3 (e.g., an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)) for displaying an image corresponding to data, and a folder housing 5 for protecting the display device 3.
In the conventional folder type communication terminal structure described as above, the data input is performed by hingedly rotating the folder 2 into the open position from the main body 1 and pressing the keys 4.
Recently, as the communication service is diversified, besides the folder type communication terminal, a slide type terminal or a swing type terminal has been developed.
The slide type terminal is widely used until the commencement of a digital broadcasting service through communication terminals. However, the current trend is to develop the various swing type terminals.
The types of the communication terminals developed until now include the bar type, flip type, folder type, slide type and swing type terminals.
Of the above various types of the communication terminals, the flip type, folder type, slide type and swing type terminals commonly have a main body, and a movable unit which is connected structurally and electrically to the main body and can move freely to a predetermined extent with respect to the main body.
Most communication terminal manufacturers concentrate their efforts to develop the compact terminals.
However, because the communication service is diversified more and more and continuously upgraded, it is very difficult to make the communication terminal compact. Especially, when making the communication terminal compact, the arrangement of the keys is a very important design factor. Also, decreasing the number or size of the keys causes an inconvenience to users.